House Speaker Robert DeLeo says the state Department of Public Health should scrap its work on granting medical marijuana licenses and start over.

DeLeo, a Democrat from Winthrop, where there are no conditionally-approved marijuana dispensaries, told NECN’s Jim Braude on “Broadside” that he has heard from some elected officials who told him their names were included on license applications in support of projects without their permission.

Asked whether the DPH should rescind its preliminary approval of 20 dispensaries, DeLeo said: “Yesterday or this morning I would have said no. They should just take a look at those where they have found errors.’

“Today I’m probably saying yes because of the fact that I’ve heard other stories today from people who have made applications who said, ‘not only did (DPH) not review or try to verify what I said but they didn’t even talk to me in terms of what this process was about,’” DeLeo said

Good Chemistry, which was granted provisional approval for a dispensary in the Back Bay and a cultivation site in Worcester, has admitted to mistakenly including statements of local support from Worcester-area lawmakers and city councilors in a rush to file its application on time.

Similar concerns have been raised about an application for a Haverhill dispensary, and many critics have questioned whether DPH Commissioner Chery Bartlett’s political ties to those associated with license seekers, such as former Congressman William Delahunt of Quincy, may have tainted the process.

Bartlett removed herself from the licensing process and appointed Karen van Unen director of the medical marijuana program. Delahunt’s group eventually won three provisional licenses.

The Department of Public Health has put all applications under further review and stressed that final licenses have not yet been issued, but Health and Human Services Secretary John Polanowitz has said he does not believe the department should have to restart the application process.

Gov. Deval Patrick, in a radio appearance Friday, also said the licensing process does not need to be restarted, citing nine additional steps before final licenses are awarded, including verification of information submitted on applications. He said the fact that the 20 finalists were made public shows the DPH’s desire to be transparent with the process.

“If somebody lied on their application, they’re not going to get a license,” Patrick said, urging the public to “relax” and defending the steps Bartlett took to avoid a conflict of interest.

The governor called the inclusion of unauthorized testimonials from public officials in support of dispensaries on applications “very, very troubling stuff,” but insisted that references would be checked before final licenses are granted.

Page 2 of 2 - Applicants who say they played by the rules are dismayed that some officials are calling for the process to be rebooted.

Van Unen said this month she expects medical marijuana dispensaries to be open by the summer. State officials are setting up one-on-one meetings with each approved applicant to explain inspectional processes, security procedures and product-testing policies, as well as steps with which they need to comply before receiving final certificates of registration.

Provisional licensees are also being urged to connect with local officials and boards of health to work through zoning, permitting and other issues, van Unen told municipal officials at a meeting on Beacon Hill.

The Department of Public Health’s medical marijuana page cites the month of March as the time for the verification phase of the licensing process, including verifying letters of local support and meeting with municipalities to confirm siting and local support.